humility
by bobtheacorn
Summary: Keith doesn't know anything about video games. Outrage ensues. / 2017's platonicvldmonth; day 7 - video games/arcade


-x-

humility

-x-

"Before I turn this on," Pidge begins, "I'd like to just go on the record and say that Hunk is hands down the best member of this team."

"Seconded," Lance says without hesitation.

Pidge continues, "And his tireless contributions to the emotional well being of his fellow paladins is commendable and beyond reproach. If I had a medal, I would give it to you, Hunk. As a matter of fact, I'm making you one first thing tomorrow."

"Stop, you guys," Hunk says, and whether he's feigning being emotional or it's genuine is hard to say. He's fanning a hand in front of his face, blinking at the ceiling. His voice is a little choked, "Man, I said I wouldn't cry."

Keith is sitting beside him on the couch with his arms crossed, bewildered by the formalities.

"I don't get it."

"To summarize. Keith:" Lance says, turning to him, "Hunk is a champion among men and we do not deserve him."

"All he did was make a box!" Keith says, throwing his hand out. He must realize how that sounds, because he hastily adds, "Not that - Hunk _isn't_ great or anything - he is - but like - "

"This is not _just a box_ ," Pidge says, indignant at the very thought. They lift it up from the floor, as if having a better view of it in all its glory might enlighten Keith to the absolute miracle that Hunk has worked here on their behalf. "This is an adapter so we can interface with the castles system!"

Keith looks at it blankly. "I thought we were already doing that."

"Keith, it's for the Gameflux! So we can _finally_ play this video game I have been waiting for _days to play!_ Hunk made a port that we can plug the composite cables into that will transfer the signals wirelessly to monitor, it is a work of genius!"

There's a long pause.

"Oh."

Lance sighs, "Why did you think we all crowded in here in front of the monitor, mullet head?"

Keith puts his hands up and shrugs.

"I don't know," he says, defensive, "Something mildly important? It's just a video game."

Pidge gasps audibly, clutching the game box to their chest and looking at Keith as if he's grown a second head. Hunk puts a hand on Keith's shoulder and says placatingly, "Okay okay, maybe it's just a nerd thing - "

"Excuse you," Lance interrupts, "I'm cool!"

Since he's currently gripping a controler for dear life to be sure he has first dibs, Hunk puts his other hand on Lance's face without looking at him, pushes him down, and continues, "Just because Keith's a little out of the loop doesn't mean we should be offended and make fun of him - "

"Are you sure," Pidge says flatly.

" - it means we should destroy him. Pidge, Lance, rock-paper-scissors for who gets to go first and give Keith the second controller."

"What!"

"Nooo!"

"That's not fair, _we_ bought it, Keith doesn't even _want_ to play!"

"I never said I didn't want to play I just - don't get what all the hype is about - "

"That's it! Lance, give him the controller! I want to make him to suffer!"

"Hang on, _I_ want to destroy Keith!"

"You _always_ want to destroy Keith, _let me have this!"_

"Keith, have you _ever_ played a videogame or done anything remotely fun ever in your life?" Hunk asks casually, while Pidge and Lance start squabbling over the controllers.

"No?" Keith says, "I mean. I never played a lot of video games. I've done plenty of fun stuff."

"Not even like, racing games or anything? Those seem kinda up your alley."

"No. Why would I bother with a simulator when I was driving real cars - "

"Oh come on, you were not!" Lance interjects heatedly. He has one foot planted in Pidge's stomach and both hands cracking around the plastic controller, trying to drag it free, and he still finds the time to scowl at Keith. "Stop trying to sound cool, Keith!"

"I wasn't? My dad used to let me sit in his lap and turn the steering wheel. I've been driving since I could reach the pedals."

"Ah man, that's really cool," Hunk says, grinning, "Probably why you're so good at piloting, huh?"

"I guess."

"Yeah yeah yeah we get it, Keith is a prodigy, blah blah blah. Pidge! Let go of the controller, I have to take him down a notch!"

"I refuse to sit back and watch you idiots play the best game in the universe when _I have been waiting days to play it myself!"_

"YEOW! PIDGE! BITING IS _NOT ALLOWED!_ PIDGE!"

Hunk actually has to get up and physically separate the two of them. "Alright, okay, everybody calm down! Why don't you guys have the first round and the winner gets to destroy Keith?"

Pidge and Lance look at each other.

"Fair," they say together.

"How is that fair," Keith whispers.

-x-

Shiro can hear the commotion in the common room before he's even halfway down the hall. The noise level increases tenfold when he actually opens up the door. Keith, Lance, Pidge, and Hunk are all facing the monitor, shouting and cheering and unintelligible yelling. They've managed to hook up their game station. That's pretty obvious; the game flashes over the screen and blasts from the speakers - a fighting game with cheesy insults, poor graphics, and voice acting that accomplishes nothing other than second-hand embarrassment.

None of the younger paladins so much as glance up when he comes in behind them and he casts around briefly, picking up the remote from where it's been tossed to the floor.

Lifting it, he mutes the monitor.

The silence that drops is tense and swift. It takes them all a second to realize what happened.

"We lost the audio!"

"Aww _quiznak!_ Maybe it shimmied loose?"

"Keith was yanking the controller!"

 _"No I wasn't!"_

"We've still got video... and the box hasn't moved! Maybe it just overheated or something - "

"No, it was me," Shiro says conversationally.

A pin-drop would be loud in here.

The four young paladins whip around, their faces bleak with panic. Shiro is trying to appear unimpressed, disapproving, but it's difficult when there's a smile fighting to spread across his face. He folds his arms and shifts his weight.

"I called everyone to the training room to go over some new battle strategies," he says, then gestures at the monitor, "but I think it's safe to say you probably didn't hear it over all the noise."

"Yyyeah," Lance says, looking guilty, "We sure didn't."

Keith looks the guiltiest. "Sorry, Shiro."

"It's fine, guys." He can't make them feel bad about it, so Shiro allows himself to smile, "I don't care how you guys spend your down time, but try to remember that the alarm could sound at any moment for an emergency. We're enemies of the Empire and we're in space - there are a million things that could happen, so just keep the volume down, alright?"

"Gotcha." Hunk shoots him a thumbs up.

"We'll keep that in mind," Pidge sounds a little impatient, makes a grabbing gesture, "Now - _please -_ turn the volume back on! This is the final level and I was kicking Keith's butt!"

"You were not, _I was winning!"_

"Okay I think we can all agree that: Keith, you suck and you were not winning," Lance says. Keith whirls around to face him and protest this, but Lance's hand shoots up. He closes his fingers together right in front of Keith's face and makes that obnoxious _upbupbupbup_ noise to shut him up. He's looking over the back of the sofa at Shiro. "Did you want us in the training room?"

Surprised by the show of maturity, Shiro says, "I did." The impression is effectively ruined as all four of them groan and roll their eyes and sag their shoulders. Pidge looks about one second away from throwing the controller down and screaming. "But if you'd all rather do this, we can label it as a bonding exercise."

"Seriously?!"

 _"Yehehes!"_

"Get over here, Shirogane, you're about to get it handed to you!"

"You've got to beat Keith first, Pidge."

"This is totally not fair - _everybody_ is better at this than me!"

"Not true, Hunk is also really bad."

"Hey, I have _weak thumbs,_ okay. I'm here to provide fun commentary and snacks. Also, we don't actually _know_ how good Shiro is at video games. He's really old - no offense - he could be a lot _worse_ than Keith."

"I can guarantee that I am not any older than this Gameflux is and no one is going to be worse at playing it than Keith."

"Wow, thanks."

"Humility is important, Keith."

-x-

(A/n) Written for 2017's platonic vld month; day 7 - video games/arcade. This was dumb but it was really fun to write! Hope you guys had fun reading it too! C:

-BobTAC


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